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  “Even with custody, he can’t spend the money,” she explained. “All that is approved from the trust is expenses for Noah. Robert lives an expensive lifestyle and over the last year or so he’s lost most of his money gambling. But he stands to gain full control of the trust money with one or both of us dead.”

  That brought a moment of silence, until Colton asked, “What happens now?”

  “First off, no one goes anywhere alone,” Joel said. “No one. And I want the kids with an adult at all times.”

  “We should leave.” Kendra pushed her chair back from the table, as if intending to do just what she suggested.

  Britt frowned. “Of course not.”

  “No one’s going anywhere,” Joel added.

  “We have to,” Kendra insisted. “If Robert’s found us, I don’t want any of you to get hurt—”

  “Why not leave?” Colton asked Joel, even though he didn’t want to let Kendra out of his sight. “Wouldn’t it be safer for them—and all of you?”

  Joel shook his head and explained, “Until we locate him, we run the risk of him following if they leave. When we know where he is, then we can take steps to get them to a secure place. Besides, this is my turf. You’ll stay,” Joel stated. “Colton and I can handle things, and I’ve got some friends at the police department who can start looking for Robert in the area.”

  Colton caught her worried look in his direction and, guessing the reason for it, he lifted a hand, palm up. “You said the reason for not going to the cops was to avoid Robert tracking you. If he’s already here, it makes sense to get as much help as we can.”

  She held his gaze, as if assessing the truth to his reasoning. Finally, with a slight nod, she turned to Joel. “I don’t have any actual proof though.”

  Joel covered her hand with his. “They’ll believe you; they’re my friends.”

  “I’m sorry.” Kendra’s soft, choked apology drew everyone’s attention. “I am so sorry I didn’t tell you everything right away. I didn’t mean to be so selfish. It’s just that it was all so…overwhelming and I—I…” Her voice broke on a soft sob. Colton almost reached for her, but as his arm lifted, he realized Joel still held her hand.

  “Kendra,” Joel said softly. “It’s okay. What’s done is done and the most important thing now is to get through this. It’s all going to work out. You’re not alone anymore, trust me.”

  “I do,” she said as she looked up, only her gaze locked with Colton’s first. His pulse took off double time as she transferred her gaze to her brother. “I trust you.”

  Chapter Seventeen

  Kendra’s eyes widened at the sight of the gun and holster under Colton’s left arm. His tight expression suggested he wasn’t quite comfortable with it, though. Joel, on the other hand, looked as if he’d been born with the one he wore.

  A police officer walked up the porch steps with the two of them. The sight of his badge made her stiffen. Colton’s hand descended gently onto her shoulder, offering silent support. The rape was the one thing she hadn’t told Joel and Britt. Thankfully, Colton hadn’t brought it up, either. And despite how angry he’d been when she came clean about everything else, since then he’d been wonderful. She relaxed under his touch and made it through the interview.

  Over the next few days, Noah stayed mostly with Joel, and Colton and his gun became her very large, very comforting shadow. She relied on his presence. Tentative tendrils of friendship strengthened and grew, allowing her to discover that besides a great sense of humor, he was very intelligent, surprisingly sensitive and undeniably sexy. Well, the last part she’d known, but the rest caught her off guard now that she wasn’t so focused on keeping secrets and he wasn’t so focused on exposing them.

  The day before her birthday, she was astride Lucky in the indoor arena as Colton sat on the small set of bleachers on the side. She rode toward him at a trot, laughing at some goofy joke. When their eyes met, time slowed for those few seconds, then Lucky glided past and the connection was broken, the moment gone. Except Kendra couldn’t catch her breath and her pulse raced.

  The following go around, she avoided his gaze, managing to maintain a light tone in response to whatever comment he made, despite the panicked beat of her heart and the knowledge that came with it.

  She’d fallen in love with the man.

  How had that happened? What about all the times he’d been completely awful to her?

  She acknowledged almost immediately his actions had been honorably motivated by concern for Joel and his family. And she’d also seen how kind he could be with the horses, with the kids…with her, even. He was loyal to Joel and Britt and worked hard for his parents, to help take care of his father.

  He was a stand-up guy with a lot to offer—and she was a complete idiot. Because he wasn’t willing to offer what he had. Not to her, not to anyone. He’d made no secret of the fact that casual relationships were his rule, if the word relationship even applied in that context.

  “Marriage doesn’t fit into my plans. Ever.”

  The words he’d said that night to Cassie were burned into Kendra’s memory. She’d fallen in love with a man who could offer her no future.

  Plus, she’d be leaving for New York right after her birthday to get her legal affairs in order. Not to mention her life. She slowed Lucky to a walk. Maybe her return to the city would be a blessing. She wouldn’t have to see Colton every day, longing for his arms to hold her, or for his lips to claim hers, or for his hands to—

  “Had enough?” Colton called.

  Not nearly. But she nodded anyway and pulled the horse to a stop to dismount. Inside the barn, she secured the stallion in the crossties. While Colton removed the saddle and put it away in the tack room, she picked up a brush. Colton returned as she fed the horse some treats.

  “You spoil him more than I do,” he accused with a grin.

  She swallowed her new nervousness and teased, “That’s because I don’t keep half the sugar cubes for myself.”

  “Unfortunately, I can’t argue that.” He laughed and joined her with another brush. Swiping it across Lucky’s flank in sure strokes, he said, “Joel said something about all of us going to a movie tonight?”

  “Yeah, he thought it might be a good idea to get away from the ranch, take everyone’s mind off all that’s going on.”

  He studied her across Lucky’s back. “You don’t sound too enthused.”

  She wasn’t…but why? Heaven knew she could use a break. The answer came swiftly to mind, coinciding with her recent revelation. With her birthday just one day away, and knowing she would return to New York the next day, she realized she wanted to stay home with Colton.

  But she couldn’t tell him that, so she shrugged. “There’s not much playing.”

  She felt his gaze on her, glanced up to see additional questions in his eyes and ducked under Lucky’s neck to put her brush away. Maybe he wanted a night off from babysitting her to go out with friends? He called her name, almost hesitantly.

  She turned to face him and quickly said, “I’m sorry, I wasn’t thinking about how much you’ve been stuck here because of me. I’ll go to the movies and you can get out of here for awhile.”

  A brief smile lifted the corners of his mouth. “I was going to ask if you’d like to go to dinner.”

  Her heart skipped a beat and threatened to run the hundred-yard dash. “Just us two?” On your mark…get set…

  “Sure. Nothing wrong with a casual dinner between friends, right?”

  False start—get back here, she admonished her racing pulse. “Right,” she echoed more slowly.

  After a moment, when she didn’t add more, he asked, “Was that a yes? Because we don’t have—”

  Take what you can! “Yes. It’s a yes.”

  “Good.”

  Kendra glanced up quick. Had he sounded relieved? Or was it just her ridiculous, hopeful heart reading things that weren’t there?

  Get a grip. Don’t make this any harder than it already is. Sh
e sighed. If that were the case, she should’ve said no.

  “We can leave after we feed the horses and clean up,” he suggested, leading Lucky to his stall.

  “Okay.”

  A half-hour later, she stood under the shower spray and wondered why she’d said yes. How did she expect to endure his laughter and jokes, his kindness and silent understanding now that she knew what her heart had been warning for the past couple weeks? Knowing she loved him while he just passed time with the closest willing female wouldn’t make it easy.

  “Then I’ll be casual, too,” she muttered as she dried off.

  In front of the mirror after she’d dressed, she revised it to sexy-casual and realized what her subconscious was urging her to do. And what would be the harm? Better to take some memories when she left than to regret later on what she could’ve had. If she were going to have this one evening, she’d make it count. Even if it was only a casual evening.

  God, she hated that word.

  She reached for a sweater to pull over her short-sleeved, scooped neck, burgundy top, then paused. If it got cold later, and he noticed she was chilled—because there didn’t seem to be much he missed regarding her lately—maybe he’d offer a warm arm around her shoulders. Ignoring the sweater, she smoothed a hand over her navel and across the hip of her low-rise jeans, which hadn’t been out of the closet since that first week on the ranch. Yeah, he’d be warm, all right.

  Smiling with increased confidence, she zipped on a pair of calf-length black leather high-heeled boots that hadn’t been ruined in the barn, and completed the ensemble with the diamond pendant her mother had given to her on her eighteenth birthday. It was the one thing she’d kept while on the run—only because she’d had nowhere to pawn it. Now she was glad at the hand fate had played.

  She smoothed the necklace against her skin. The thought of Colton trailing a finger along the length of the chain sent a shiver down her spine and spread heat deep down inside. This was going to be a night to remember.

  Colton stood in the living room and his appreciative smile sent her heart slamming against her ribs again.

  “Wow, you clean up nice.”

  Heat flooded her face and she hoped he didn’t notice. He’d changed into clean jeans and a long sleeved burnt-orange ribbed shirt that deepened the caramel highlights in his hair and brightened the light green of his eyes. She drew in a breath and, in the spirit of casual, managed to joke, “One of us has to.”

  “Gee, thanks.”

  “What are friends for?” she quipped before she could stop herself.

  “Right.” For just a second, he sounded annoyed, then he suggested, “Let’s walk over and let those guys know we’re going to skip the movie.”

  She wasn’t so sure she wanted to face Joel with him knowing it was just her and Colton going to dinner. “Or we could call.”

  Colton held the door open with a grin. “Just as easy to walk.”

  Fine.

  She noticed on the way over that Colton had left his gun behind and almost asked about it, until she realized he could hardly wear a gun out in public. Strangely enough, she didn’t feel any less safe with him. Again, he held the door for her and she walked ahead into the kitchen of the main house.

  Kendra was immediately struck by a hush that she’d never heard in the usually chaotic house. Uneasiness rippled through her. Her gaze darted to the windows as she instinctively sought security from Colton. “Where is everyone?”

  His arm came up around her shoulders as she pressed close to his side. “Probably just waiting for us in the living room. Come on.”

  She resisted, whispering frantically, “Something’s not right. What if Rob—”

  “Shh.” His other arm pulled her into a full hug. “Trust me, everything’s fine.”

  “But—”

  He sighed, his breath stirring her hair. “Noah wanted to throw you a surprise birthday party.”

  “Oh.” His words registered and she finally relaxed in his arms. “Oh,” she repeated in a deflated whisper as full comprehension dawned.

  “See? Everything is fine.” He turned her to face the doorway leading to the foyer and the large living room beyond. Hands on her shoulders, he walked her forward and whispered, “Now act surprised.”

  She nodded, but all the way across the floor and until the kids jumped out hollering, “Surprise,” she couldn’t stop thinking what an idiot she was. He hadn’t really asked her to dinner, it’d only been a ploy to get her over here. He never actually wanted to spend time alone with her.

  Still, she made the appropriate exclamations and smiled like she was having a great time. The true surprise came though when she noticed an older version of Joel standing off to the side with a brunette woman she’d never seen before. The man had to be Joel’s father—her mother’s ex-husband. No big deal…so why did she have tiny butterflies suddenly spring to life in her stomach?

  She did her best to focus on the kids’ beaming faces. “I can’t believe you did all this,” she exclaimed.

  “It was Noah’s idea,” Dustin blurted.

  Her gaze strayed back to the older couple across the room before she forced a smile for her little brother. “Well, thanks, Noah. This is great.”

  He shrugged as if it was no big deal, but she could tell by his smile her response made him happy.

  “We’re early,” he half-apologized. “But I know we’ve got a lot of stuff to do tomorrow.”

  Her heart tugged and she gave him a quick hug. Over Noah’s shoulder, she saw Joel motion his father closer. Her stomach flip-flopped as she stepped back from Noah and they approached.

  “Kendra, I’d like you to meet my dad, Jack.”

  She accepted his outstretched hand with a nervous smile. “Nice to meet you.”

  “And you…despite the circumstances.” Jack covered their clasped hands with his other one as his gaze surveyed her features with amazement. “My God, you do look so much like your mother.”

  Hard to tell if that was good or bad. “Um…”

  He blinked, released her hand, and grimaced. “Sorry. I just needed a moment to absorb it.”

  “It’s okay,” she assured him. “Joel had the same reaction.”

  His smile returned and he turned to draw the brunette forward, introducing her as his wife, Andrea. She relaxed, reassured by their warm acceptance, and by the time dinner was half over, conversation between them flowed comfortably. Much like that first dinner at Joel’s house, Kendra felt truly at home in her heart, in the company of family.

  More than once, a memory of the father she’d grown up with flashed in her mind. He’d been kind enough, but she realized now his possessive love for her mother had overshadowed all else. Watching Jack joke with Joel and lovingly tease his grandsons, she saw what she’d missed out on in the father/daughter relationship. If Jack had been her father, she may have had an honest to goodness dad, instead of a father figure in the literal sense.

  She turned her attention back to her plate to avoid dwelling on it and ended up thinking about Colton’s non-dinner invitation instead. After they’d finished eating, she caught a minute alone with him. “You knew about this all along, didn’t you?”

  “Not until I called to let Joel know we weren’t joining them for the movie. That’s why we walked.”

  “Oh.”

  So, he had asked her to dinner. She wrestled the pull of a happy grin, only to have his light green gaze lock on hers and take her breath away.

  “Kendra?” Britt called from the kitchen. “There’s a Michael on the phone for you.”

  Jealousy knifed through Colton as Kendra hurried to take the call that he hadn’t even heard ring in. Even knowing her lawyer’s name did nothing to ease his emotions. This was precisely the reason he needed to remain distant from her. They came from different worlds, and she’d go back to hers very soon. Asking her to dinner, just the two of them, was a mistake.

  Unsettling feelings had consumed him since the moment he’d discovered the v
ery real danger Kendra and Noah faced. Deep feelings he had no business acknowledging, and certainly not encouraging.

  Yet he couldn’t help but watch for her return. When she did, he straightened. She looked tired—and worried. Oh, she still smiled, but as she rejoined the party, he saw exhaustion in her shadowed eyes, and the droop of her shoulders. He’d bet she still wasn’t sleeping well. Why hadn’t he seen it before? Because you were too wrapped up in how you felt to notice, you jerk.

  He cornered her in the great room a short time later. “Is everything okay?”

  “Fine.”

  Colton’s jaw tightened. Another lie. He thought they were past this. Her gaze met his for a second, then bounced away. His brief flash of irritation was replaced by increased concern and he leaned closer. “Kendra, what is it?”

  Before she could answer, Joel joined them, handing a beer to Colton. He didn’t want the damn beer, but could hardly tell Joel what he really wanted, so he took a swig and lowered it to his side, tapping it impatiently against his leg.

  Without warning, the lights went out. Hearing Kendra’s indrawn breath and feeling her press against his side, her fingers grasping for his, he tensed before the off-key rendition of “Happy Birthday” registered. A blazing cake appeared in the kitchen doorway, carried by Britt and Noah.

  Kendra stepped away from him and Colton was forced to temper his impatience over the next hour. After that, he began to wonder if she was avoiding him? That first beer went down faster than he’d intended, followed by a couple more. The moment he realized what he was doing, he quit.

  By ten, Colton also quit wondering—Kendra was avoiding him. He tried to catch her gaze more than once, but each time she conveniently turned to someone else and ignored him. Finally, he gave up, said goodnight, and made his way back to the guest house.

  But, as he lay on his tiny bed staring at the ceiling more than an hour later with his hands clasped behind his head, sleep eluded him.

  A soft knock, followed by the uninvited opening of the door brought his head up. He peered across the room, lit only by the light of an almost full moon. His heart started a steady thump.